ABSTRACT
Peaceful changes between different factions of the ruling classes, which have been rather frequent in other Latin American countries, have not taken place in Nicaragua. On a narrow isthmus between the world's two great oceans, Nicaragua and its Central American neighbors share a geopolitical burden worthy of Job. The United States (US) concern with stability in the Caribbean Basin was especially pronounced in Nicaragua, because it was chronically unstable, and it offered the only alternative canal route to that of Panama. Anastasio Somoza was the first Nicaraguan leader to recognize that the US had really decided to withdraw from Nicaragua's politics. Somoza's attempt to identify himself and his cause with the United States infuriated his opponents and exasperated Washington, which was trying to remove itself from Nicaragua's internal affairs. Somoza had learned to dodge or ignore US pressures, but in the end, he could not ignore Nicaragua's subterranean rhythm.
